Interiors at North Carolina Museum of Art

North Carolina Museum of Art

Raliegh, NC

919-839-6262

http://www.ncartmuseum.org

Interiors

Sneak a glimpse through a series of open doorways. Ponder the view from the front seat of a '56 Chevy Bel Air. Explore the comfortable elegance of a Cape May summer residence or the stark barracks of a Nazi German concentration camp in occupied Poland. Pay a visit to a miniature two-story home or to a full-sized structure built of charred and treated lumber, set on a hillock and surrounded by marigolds. (left: Alex Harris, Arturo Serna Castillo's 1956 Dodge Lancer, view of CalleCardenas, Habana Vieja, looking northeast, Havana, Cuba, May 20, 1998)

From Sept. 17 to Dec. 3, 2000, the North Carolina Museum of Art presents "Interiors," an exhibition of works by 12 artists, ranging from painting and photography to sculpture and installations - all exploring the notion of the interior.

"The interior as a genre has a noble, centuries-old tradition in the history of art," said Huston Paschal, exhibition curator and the Museum's associate curator of modern art. "This show will demonstrate that contemporary art has much to contribute to this long-standing tradition."

Selected works explore the different kinds of space - physical, mental, spiritual - represented in both real and imagined interiors. The exhibition recognizes a room's variable potential by exploring such diverse interiors as Shellburne Thurber's photographs of abandoned houses, Cheryl Goldsleger's paintings of visionary spaces, Marc Leuthold's carved ceramic sculptures, or even Jeffrey W. Goll's hard-shell gourds, whose insides contain dioramas viewed through an old camera lens. (left: Shellburne Thurber, Gholson homeplace: Entryway with front door)

"The theme of interiors lends itself particularly well to installations, and the show will include one work inside and one out," said Paschal. "The indoor installation, by Brad Thomas of Charlotte, is a tilted room designed in forced perspective - inspired by the Museum's 15th-century German painting of Saint Jerome in his study. Viewers will be free to explore the space, whose floor, walls and ceiling will be papered in pages from books.

"The outdoor work is by High Point native Craig Pleasants, who now lives in Amherst, Va. This installation will be a two-story tower constructed from charred and treated lumber and steel-pipe railing and prominently sited on the Museum's grounds."

Works featured in the show also include: Stephen Aubuchon's photographs of a German concentration camp in occupied Poland; Donald Furst's prints of pathways, thresholds and labyrinths; Alex Harris' photographs of the interiors of vintage cars; Page H. Laughlin's paintings of plush living rooms; Andrea Mai Lekberg's wardrobe storing garments of another era; and Elizabeth Matheson's photographs of private residences. Several of these artists have North Carolina connections. (left: Stephen Aubuchon, Barracks #1, from Visions of Fear: Photographs of Nazi Death Camps)

Litho Industries is the presenting sponsor of the exhibition. Accompanying the exhibition is an illustrated catalogue featuring an essay by Paschal.

rev 1/16/01, 2/7/05

Editor's note: At the request of Anna Niewiadomska, First Counselor, Embassy of the Republic of Poland and with approval of the Museum, on 2/7/05 RL amended text in the first paragraph of this article as recommended by the Embassy for historical accuracy. RL wishes to extend appreciation to the Embassy for contacting us on the facts involved.

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This page was originally published in Resource Library Magazine. Please see Resource Library's Overview section for more information. rev. 3/2/11

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